Beauty and the Beast
by pixie.93
Summary: Edward Cullen is a 28 year old recluse. An accident when he was a teenager left him scarred, inside and outside. Can the shy, beautiful Bella Swan, his new maid, work her way into Edward's frozen heart or will his demons be too much for them to survive?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! This is my first fanfic, hope you enjoy! Try and take it easy on me!**

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**EPOV**

15 years ago today. It doesn't feel like it, it feels like it happened only yesterday. Already the 15th anniversary of the day that ruined my life. The day I lost my family. The day I lost myself.

I sit in my office alone, a bottle of half empty JD next to me, trying not to get sucked back into the horrifying memories; the screech of the tires, the screams of my mother, the horrible sound of metal crashing into metal, the shards of glass everywhere, the deadly stillness of my father, the blood dripping down my face, the agonizing pain from the flames licking my skin until the world faded away into darkness. I guess I should be thankful for my unconsciousness. I didn't have to see my mother and fathers dead bodies being zipped up and taken away or watch as the spectators watched my burnt body being dragged out of the blazing car, firefighters struggling to put out the flames. Or having to attend my parent's funeral, to say goodbye to the only family I had. No, I spent the first month after the accident in a coma.

They say I was lucky to live. I wouldn't call this living, I'm merely existing.

So I guess I should introduce myself.

My name is Edward Cullen. I'm a 28 year old author. I'm was born in Chicago, where I lived until the accident at 13, where I was then put into foster care, and was to a foster home after foster home after foster home. As soon as I turned 18, I left the foster home and never looked back. After two years of drifting from place to place, I eventually settled into the busy city life of New York. Sick of jobs I didn't enjoy, such as call centre jobs, I decided to send a draft of a sci-fi story I had written. To my absolute shock, it was published a few months later! Since then, I have published 6 more books, with one of them landing a spot on the New York Times Best Seller List. I invested my money wisely and now have a good amount in my savers account. I mean what would I actually spend money on, I had no family and barely any friends. And I'm content with that. It's not like people would actually want to be around someone who looks like me. A _hideously scarred beast_.

Stuck in those awful memories of that day, I finish my JD, thankful when the world fades into oblivion.


	2. Chapter 2

**So as I said before, this is my first fanfic. I hope you all are enjoying it so far. I tried to make this chapter longer as requested. Hope you enjoy! **

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**EPOV**

When my books started getting published, I put the cheques in the bank, letting the money build up, waiting to save enough money to buy a place to live, a place where I could be myself. After a year or so, I had enough money to buy a mansion if I wanted to. I knew I was lucky, not many writers have very successful careers. And I did feel lucky, I felt blessed. People actually wanted to read _my_ books, mine. Edward Cullen, the weird loser's books. Edward Cullen, the ugly freak's books.

Deciding it was time to put down some roots, I searched and searched for the perfect house. It took a while, nearly a year, but I found it. It was my _sanctuary_, the one place I actually felt free in, the place where nobody judged me. It was perfect, it was _mine_.

It was a beautiful house, 3 stories, 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and huge fully equipped kitchen. The feature that drew me in though was the indoor pool, a 100m heated swimming pool. After the accident that left my body covered in scars, I found myself swimming all the time. It soothed my skin, calmed my emotions and it felt good to push my body, to feel like I had achieved something.

It was only me living there, and would only ever be me living there so I decided to convert two of the bedrooms. One became a fully equipped gym, and the other became my music room. Probably my favourite room in the whole of the house, not including the pool of course. I decorated, or rather paid someone to decorate, my music room in a pale yellow. Girly I know, but it calms me down, soothes my soul. The cheery yellow makes me feel better somehow. I had a beige sofa, my beloved piano, a drum set, 2 guitars and a bass. There were papers everywhere, some songs that I had composed, others my favourite songs by others, although I knew them by memory now.

But with all the rooms in the house, there came a lot of cleaning. Something I don't enjoy. **At all**. I figured I had the money to hire someone to clean my house, someone who would stay out of my way and not disturb me whilst I was writing or playing. Unfortunately for me, everyone I hired seemed to never work out. There was the one who blasted music while she was tidying, then the one who brought all five of her children to work with her. Not that I minded, until they broke one of guitars. I swear they just made the mess worse than it was before. Frustrated, I put an ad out detailing what I needed done and my rules. I have four rules. One: do not disturb me, two: do not touch my piano, three: be as quiet as possible, and four: do not disturb me. I guess you can tell that I don't like to be disturbed. Sometimes when I'm writing, I can be there for hours, in the zone. If someone disturbs me, I lost concentration and most of the time, my ideas. Not a good idea for someone who depends on writing as his income.

I was surprised when four people applied for the job. The first three were disasters. I was hoping the fourth would be a success. Miss Isabella Swan. I really hope she works out, my house needs cleaning as soon as possible!

Miss Swan and I would be having an interview on the phone at 4pm. I don't like to show my face in public. I hate the reactions I get; the stares, the gasps, the pointing and, worst of all, the disgust.

I checked my watch and seen it was only 12:30. Might as well do a bit of writing until I had to speak with Miss Swan.

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**BPOV**

5:30pm. It's frickin 5:30 and I'm still waiting for the phone call for my job interview! Such a good start. Cue the sarcasm.

I didn't have time to hang around and wait for Mr Cullen to decide to bother to ring me. I was a busy bee. College really isn't for amateurs. You see those movies where all college students don't go to lectures, have no work to do and party and day and night. They're wrong, _very wrong_! I have work due all the time. Essays, presentations, tests. Being a double major in English literature and German was just not easy! German is challenging enough without adding my English lit classes and work to the pile. But oh well, only one more year to go. I was a soon to be senior college student.

My name is Isabella Swan, although I go by Bella. I'm 21 years old, although I'll be turning 22 in a few weeks. thankfully I got a partial scholarship to Columbia University, I was so glad to get out of my hometown of Forks, Washington. Unfortunately, that doesn't cover board or food. I had worked through high school and saved some money, but that didn't last very long so I am in serious need of a job. When I saw the ad for cleaning Mr Cullen's house, I thought it was fate! I've had experience cleaning houses before, including my childhood home. My parents weren't exactly tidy. The salary and working times were amazing, seriously too good to pass up. I guess I let my enthusiasm get the best of me. It doesn't seem like Mr Cullen is that desperate for a new house cleaner. If it looks too good to be true, 90% of the time it is. Too bad this was one of _those_ times.

Tired of waiting for the call, I decided to finish my German grammar work. I'd been putting this off for as long as possible, the subjunctive in German is not fun at all! I mean, it's not like it's needed. We don't even use it English nowadays!

Just as I was finishing the last question, hurray!, my phone started to ring. Grateful for distraction, I lunged for the phone, answering it with a 'what up dawg?' thinking it would be my best friend Alice. It wasn't. Just my luck.

'Hello, is this Miss Swan?' a smooth masculine voice whispered into my ear.

'Err, yes, it is. And who is this?' I replied, still shocked.

'Hello Miss Swan, this is Edward Cullen. I am so sorry for the delay in ringing you, I lost track of time when I was writing earlier on today' the mystery man said.

'Oh, Mr Cullen! Hi.' My cheeks heated in embarrassment, remembering my greeting when I answered my phone.

'I hope this isn't a bad time for you, I apologise again. Would you like to rearrange the interview for tomorrow? Around 6 if you're free, Miss Swan?' Mr Cullen asked.

'Yes, tomorrow at six is fine. I look forward to your call' I said, glad the interview would actually be taking place.

'Actually, Miss Swan, I was wondering if you would be able to do the interview in person tomorrow? Either at my house or a café somewhere? I'm sorry for the inconvenience.', he said shocking me.

'No. that's fine, Mr Cullen. I'll see you at your house tomorrow at six. Goodbye!' I stated cheerfully into the phone, waiting for a reply before I put the phone down.

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**EPOV**

After giving Miss Swan my address and directions to it, I hung up the phone.

What. The. Hell?!

I don't know what came over me, asking Miss Swan to come and take the interview in person. I know I shocked her. Hell, I shocked myself too. I'm just glad she decided to come to my house. Me and public places just don't mix. After hearing that husky feminine voice over the phone, I just couldn't wait to meet her. I _needed_ to see her, needed to meet the mysterious Isabella Swan.

God help me tomorrow.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! Here's the chapter where Bella and Edward meet face to face! How do you think that will turn out? **

**Hope you enjoy!**

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**EPOV**

_Oh god, I think I'm going to throw up! _Miss Swan would be arriving in 20 minutes, and to say that I was nervous was a _huge_ understatement!

My palms were sweating and I felt like my tie was going to choke me. Loosening my tie, I tried to calm myself down. _What's the worst that could happen?_

Well, she could run off screaming, trying to get away from the horrid beast.

_Try to think positive thoughts. Try to think positive thoughts._

When people saw me for the first time, there was lots of different reactions. There were gasps, stares, pointing, but the worst was the fear in their eyes.

They would see me, see the scars that covered the left side of my face, the shiny wrinkly skin, my deformed ear and would act scared. Change their path so they didn't come near me, edge away, make sure their children weren't anywhere near me. I swear they acted like I was Freddy Krueger.

Most people's reaction actually upset me, which is why I try not to go out in public often. It wasn't like it was my fault, I was just the unlucky kid who ended up in an accident. Over time, my skin has gotten thicker, and I try not to let people's reactions bother me as much as I did. The first couple years after the accident were the worst.

Children's reactions are strangely the ones which bother me the least. They are curios creatures with no censure. If they want to know why one side of my face looks weird, they ask. They don't make it awkward. I give them and honest answer, tell them I was in an accident, and that's usually the end of it. It's actually quite refreshing.

Seeing I have 5 minutes until Miss Swan arrives, I try to tidy my desk up a bit, although there's not much to do, just put some loose papers away. I'm a bit of a neat freak.

Hearing the doorbell ring, my heart starts to race and I begin to regret my decision to meet in person. What if she doesn't react well to my face? What if she says she couldn't stand to work for someone who looks like me?

The doorbell ringing again brings me out of my rising panic attacks and springs me into action. Irun to the door, making sure to open it so that the left side of my face isn't visible to her just yet.

Wow. Just wow. She is stunning, amazing, beautiful.

She in tiny compared to me, standing to be around 5"4. She has the prettiest chocolate brown eyes I've ever had the pleasure of seeing, shining with excitement. Long, curly, dark lashes frame her gorgeous eyes, making her eyes stand out. Long, curly brown hair frames her heart shaped face, making her look a little innocent, and younger than I expected. She has the most adorable chin I have ever seen, with a little cleft in it, adding to the innocent vibe. But her figure, wow.

She was wearing a plain white blouse which fit her figure perfectly, cinching in at her tiny waist, clinging to her perfect breasts, which I had to force myself to look away from. Her long slim legs were covered my black pants and she had cute little ballet flats on. The look suited her perfectly.

I heard a quiet gasp, making me realise that as I was looking over her, I had angled my body so I was fully facing her, giving her a good look at my scarred face.

This couldn't be good.

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**BPOV**

I was looking forward to this interview. Mr Cullen sounded like an interesting person over the phone, and I couldn't wait to get to meet him in person. He seemed shy, polite and a little bit nervous.

Pulling up the house, I couldn't help but stare at the house. It was beautiful.

After ringing the doorbell, I stood there for a couple minutes waiting for someone to answer it. Frowning, I pressed it again, knowing I am, and always will be, an impatient person.

After a couple seconds, the door opened and I met the most beautiful pair of eyes I had seen. Bright green, framed by thick lashes. God, most girls I knew would kill for those lashes, me included.

He seemed to be taking me in, so I thought I would do the same in return. Wow, he was gorgeous. Perfect sculpted cheekbones, plump kissable lips, a cute nose, if noses could be considered cute.

I loved his hair. It was a bronzy, reddy color, which looked to be in the messy style, but you could tell it wasn't intentional. His hair just seemed to be wild. I just wanted to run my hands through it, see if it looked as soft as it looked.

Focused on this hair, I didn't realised he had changed his stance, so his body was fully facing mine.

As I got a good look at his face, I gasped. I couldn't help it, half of his face was covered in what looked to be burn scars. It was strange, seeing how perfect one side of his face was, and then how the other was scarred.

Strangely, the burns didn't put me off. It just made me more curious about him, about how he had gotten those burns. I wanted to get to know Mr Cullen better, definitely as an employer, and hopefully, maybe even a romantic relationship.

I knew many people would be put off by the burns, but I thought it added character. To go through something that looked to be terribly painful, and come out stronger on the other side showed what amazing character he had.

Unfortuantely, I think he took my gasp in the wrong way, as his warm eyes immediately became cold, making me shiver.

"Mr Cullen I assume. It's nice to meet you, I'm Isabella Swan, although I prefer just Bella.", I said, apparently surprising him.

"Er, hi, Bella- I mean Miss Swan. I'm glad you could make it. Why don't you come inside and we can start the interview." He said, looking all adorable and flustered.

Following him, I took in his office and liked what I saw. Dark brown oak desk, a brown leather chair and not much else. It suited him.

"Here, sit." He said, pointing to the two chairs in front of his desk, surprising me as he took the one next to me, and not across.

"Thank you, Mr Cullen"

"Please, call me Edward" he said, smiling slightly at me, but still looking uncomfortable. "So about the job. I would need you to clean all the rooms in the house, apart from my office. I don't really mind what hours you decide to work, as long as you get all the work done. I will pay you 500 dollars a week, if you agree to that? I would only ask that you do not disturb me unless absolutely necessary. How does that sound, Miss Swan?" he asked me.

"Wow. That sounds wonderful! Although I think 500 dollars is way too much, I only earned 250 a week in my last job. Everything else sounds fine! When do I start?" I said, beaming at him, squirming in my seat in excitement. I can't believe I got the job! My week was looking up already!

"I assure you that 500 dollars is a perfectly good amount for you to earn. My house is very big and the work will be challenging, and I pride myself on paying generously. You could start this week if you prefer, Monday is good with me." He replied. _Well who am I to argue with that?_

"That sounds perfect, Edward! I'll see you Monday!" I said, beaming at him as I stood up.

He stood up and opened his office door for me, what a gentleman, and walked me to the front door.

"It was nice meeting you, Miss Swan. I look forward to seeing you Monday. I will meet you then and give you a tour of the house before you start. Goodbye."

"That sounds perfect! See you Monday, Edward!" I said excitedly, already impatient, knowing I couldn't wait to see him again.

I was going to find out everything about the mystery that was Edward Cullen. The sooner, the better.

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**EPOV**

_Whew. Well, that went better than expected._ I thought that she would run away screaming once she saw my face, but she shocked even me.

Miss Swan- Bella- even made eye contact with me after seeing me fully, acting like everything was normal. I was surprised, in a good way.

I couldn't wait for Monday, to get to know the beauty that was Isabella Swan better.

_Who knows, from the way she reacted, she could be interested in me. As a person. As a romantic partner. _I cut that train of thought off before it got too far, before I convinced myself that Bella was meant for me.

Yeah right, I was destined to be alone, and I had resigned myself to that fact. Even Bella Swan couldn't change that.

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**Thanks for putting out that I put Isabella Cullen, instead of Swan. I didn't even realise! :D**

**I've fixed it now, and hope you enjoyed this chapter!**


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